RE: Porsche spin-out

["Jeff Jensen" <jjensen@domain.elided>]

I missed the rain this weekend in SF, but did get to enjoy it in frozen form
up in Tahoe. Paid the price with an 8 hour ride home, though...

A couple of responses on the Porsche spin-out have covered the issues well.
I can add two comments based on my experience. First, at normal, non-racing
speeds on a smooth highway like 280, the tires will have the major impact on
a car's wet-weather performance. My 911 has barely DOT-legal shaved
autocross tires on it, and it would be downright undriveable on wet roads.
The speed cited during the spin-out suggests that this car was on wide,
nearly non-treaded tires.

I race a Formula Vee, which is a formula car based on early (Series 1) VW
Bug mechanicals. A true poor man's formula car, with only about 60 hp
available from the tweaked 4 cylinder engine. In my region we race with
Formula Fords, which have significantly more horsepower and much wider tires
and usually lap about around 10 seconds faster on our 2.5 to 3 mile long
local tracks- except when it rains. Then the narrower rain tires on our FV's
slice much better through the water layer on the track, allowing the Vee's
to maintain much higher cornering speeds. It's fun to be at the front every
once in a while!

Jeff Jensen
SF

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